


Like God in Heaven Gave Me a Turn

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Anxiety, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Galaxy Garrison, M/M, Pre-Canon, Worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-26
Updated: 2017-08-26
Packaged: 2018-12-20 06:04:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11914749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The dim blue glow of the computer screen was like a home to Matt. It didn’t matter that it had started hurting his head after a while, or that it was enabling him to feign off sleep for another two hours - it was helping him progress, step by step. Computer binary was his native language and English was just something he picked up along the way, and he found himself relating more to the systematic, repetitive way of technology than other people’s unpredictable behavior. In the face of the luminescence, he was unbothered by the ache in his spine from sitting oddly or the growing weight under his eyes as he pondered the consequences he would face the next morning.





	Like God in Heaven Gave Me a Turn

**Author's Note:**

> Matt/Shiro is my rarepair OTP and I am so sad that Matt doesn't have more screentime...I hope that changes in season four! I also love that it's canon that Shiro and Matt graduated at the same time, there's so much material to work with there.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

The dim blue glow of the computer screen was like a home to Matt. It didn’t matter that it had started hurting his head after a while, or that it was enabling him to feign off sleep for another two hours - it was helping him progress, step by step. Computer binary was his native language and English was just something he picked up along the way, and he found himself relating more to the systematic, repetitive way of technology than other people’s unpredictable behavior. In the face of the luminescence, he was unbothered by the ache in his spine from sitting oddly or the growing weight under his eyes as he pondered the consequences he would face the next morning. 

That didn’t stop him, of course - it only distracted him. Dammit, he needed to be able complete these algorithms if he was going to accompany his father on the Kerberos mission! That was his contribution and if he couldn’t solve them, then he’d miss the opportunity of a lifetime with his father, with his friend and they could get into danger without the mathematics correctly dealt with. If he couldn’t do this now, when he had the time to do it, then he’d be useless in time-sensitive situations. That couldn’t happen, these needed to be done.

Completely engrossed in his work, he didn’t notice the hand curling around his wrist until it dragged him away from the keyboard. Shiro, with his forehead pressing against the side of Matt’s thigh and his feet sticking out from underneath the sheet covering both him and Matt’s lap, grumbled something into the mattress. Matt tried to pull away, telling Shiro that he had to work but the other man wouldn’t relent. His hand wrapped around Matt’s thin wrist and tucked it under his cheek. 

“Go t’sleep,” Shiro slurred. The contours of his face were highlighted by the computer light, from the sharp cheekbones to the curved button nose that Matt loved so much. Matt knew he wouldn’t wake up to this face - the young pilot would have to slip away before wake up and back to his own room while Holt slept through all the noise. Their system was pretty efficient, taking shifts sneaking down the hallways and hoping no one would report them; only a few close calls had been made.

Matt used his free hand to type, but it really slowed him down. His mind would move onto the next equation while he was still typing in the solution for the last one. 

“C’mon, dude, this is important. I won’t be any good for the trip if I can’t do this,” he whined. Shiro was cute as hell but, seriously, this needed to be finished. And it didn’t help that the man snuggled his face against the hand he had trapped. There were only a few things that Matt couldn’t resist, and Shiro’s oddly affectionate antics were one of them. His finger twitched against the other boy’s cheek, pretending it was an accident as he tried to find a stopping point for the problem he was on. 

When he didn’t, and Shiro was getting bored of waiting and fighting off sleep until Matt was ready, the pilot pushed himself onto his elbows and stared until Matt looked at him through sleepy eyes and askew glasses. Shiro picked the spectacles off his face and expertly tossed them onto the clothes on the floor, then ran a thumb down his cheek and under his chin. Holt saved his work and closed his laptop, finally, letting go of the work he had been so anxious about. Green numbers glowed in his vision and he blinked until they went away, burying his face in his friend’s chest and slinging an arm over his torso. 

Shiro tucked his nose into Matt’s hair. “You shouldn’t overwork yourself like this. The team is lucky - I am lucky - to have you here, and on the mission.”

Holt was quiet. He knew he wouldn’t have been invited if he couldn’t contribute anything to the project, but did they really know what he was capable of? Or was the family name enough to qualify him for the role? What if he failed and brought the whole family shame? He felt the pressure building up, inflating him until he burst into pieces and there would be nothing of him left except for a few pictures and crappy memories underneath his failure. Even if he did exceptionally well in class, applying the knowledge to real-life, dire situations wasn’t something he was experienced in and one mistake could lead to catastrophe; he would be held responsible.

“Matt?” Shiro asked. The hint of concern at the edge of his voice made Matt blush, thankful that the darkness had hidden it. The man already had too much ammo for his liking.

“Yeah,” he finally responded. “I guess we’re all lucky to have each other. The mission certainly needs all the help it can get.”

The pilot pulled him closer and embraced him with strong, possessive arms. “That’s right - and the mission needs you, Holt. I have never seen another person as mathematically talented as you are - it’s humbling, really. You have nothing to be afraid of unless there’s something we’re all afraid of.”

“Ha,” Matt said. His forehead rested against Shiro’s as the weight of his sleepiness caught up to him, his eyes falling shut and his lips parted as his breathing slowed and deepened. “Something we’re all afraid of - I wonder what that could be?”

The steady rise and fall of Shiro’s chest helped lull him asleep. It was in that moment, Matt realized that he could never find complete solace in technology like he had for so long because Shiro was his home. He’d regret the time he spent bent over his laptop instead of resting with the boy curled around his hip and all the worrying he put the both of them through. There wasn’t enough time in the world to make up for what they had lost, so he’d have to use what he had left.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
